Long Island's Andrew Weiss and Friends have made a name for themselves since their debut LP arrived in 2018 with their unique blend of Laurel Canyon folk rock and the sonic flourishes of late-70s power pop. Singer-songwriter Andrew Weiss clings to and cherishes moments of intimacy and emotional currency through his songwriting. A classic glow silhouettes his storytelling, fusing a smart, throwback warmth and charm right into the work. Weiss’ songs show off his chops for character-driven stories, with an attention to detail and lyrical prowess on par with the likes of Tom Petty, paired with a sense of melody that pays homage to Cheap Trick and Buffalo Springfield. Weiss and his collaborators return in 2025 with a glowing new album, “The Last of the Outdoor Kids”.
Unintentionally, Weiss has developed a recording pattern: when an album is about to be released, he starts on the next one. Weiss admits, “I’m always writing, so there’s always songs. As far as recording them, I guess you could say I’m addicted.” The album’s journey started off with a songwriting collaboration between Weiss and guitarist Sam Popkin called “Put That In Your Pipe (And Smoke It)”. Weiss remembers, “It was one of those songs Sam had been kicking around for years, but he only had the chords and the overall feel. He asked if I had any ideas for a melody and lyrics, and there it was. That really opened the floodgates.” Armed with “Pipe” and “Cash For Gold”, an acoustic driven song written by Weiss reflecting on the day Robbie Robertson of The Band passed away, they spent one summer day in 2023 tracking both songs together with Weiss’ wife Sara singing harmony.
As 2023 went on, Weiss and Popkin continued writing together, working simultaneously on songs for the album, as well as an original musical titled “Apollo: The Man Who Built The Moon”. The musical premiered at the Emerging Artists Theatre Spark Theatre Festival in New York City, to a sold-out crowd in March 2025. For the album, the duo emerged with “This Is Your Captain Speaking”, a White Album outtake in an alternate reality. Weiss also finished off the romantically psychedelic “Arnold Palmer” and the woodsy “Hope All Is Well”, each of those songs being recorded together by ASS (Andrew, Sara, Sam) at Popkin’s Eat At Home Studio over a snow filled weekend in Winter 2024.
The first few months of 2024 were filled with shows in the New York area. “I made the conscious decision to spread out the making of this album. After all, there was no rush, especially with the release of the world’s smallest violin. happening in October 2024,” Weiss says. “It was apparent to me, however, that through the end of 2023 into the beginning of 2024, the band was sounding so great on stage. I had the overwhelming feeling that we needed to document it. Right away.” So, they did just that. In March 2024, the whole band entered Meadowood Sound in Long Island over two days, once again with long-time engineer of Weiss’ music, Will Harris at the recording helm. They recorded the remaining 7 songs almost completely live (vocals too).
The music is truly a fresh take on their trademark “Power Pop-icana” sound. Starting with the opening track “I Don’t Wanna Live In This World”, which Weiss sings with a scowl echoing Elvis Costello against a backdrop of syncopated drums (played by Joe Pess) and chiming guitars. Throughout the album, characters flow in and out of the songs, consistently in search of peace and harmony from here and beyond. “It’s Not Funny Yet” combines the influence of Joni Mitchell and CSNY, the music galloping along freely while the lyrics push for love and understanding over spite and hatred.
The album’s title “The Last of the Outdoor Kids” is a phrase Weiss read in a magazine article that stuck with him. Weiss reflects, “Everyone in the band is roughly a similar age, and therefore, part of the same generation. Being born in the early 90s, we really are the last generation that did not grow up with smartphones and the internet at our fingertips from day one. The phrase felt like a genuine way to group the songs on the album together.”
Self-taught on the many instruments he knows how to play, Weiss’ journey sprouted from early exposure to The Beatles, which came full circle in 2018 after a spontaneous run-in and 20 minute conversation with Paul McCartney. He began picking guitar and writing songs at only seven years old, and he would later play in various bands throughout his youth. In 2009, he formed a solo endeavor called High Fascination and wrote, recorded and mixed three pop/rock-leaning albums alone in his bedroom.
During his time at NYU, where he studied Music Theory & Composition, Weiss wrote music for films and various ensembles. His High Fascination work also continued there, and he eventually discovered a group of musicians to join him. Four more albums were released during Weiss’ time in college, before the musical style soon shifted to a more Americana-driven approach, or “Power Pop-icana” as Weiss likes to call it. High Fascination ultimately folded to make way for a new project, as a brand new circle of friends and musicians emerged — Andrew Weiss and Friends was born in 2016.
The band has stayed busy since their debut album The Honeymoon Suite was released in 2018 with six more LPs, three EPs, and ten standalone singles. They have sold out multiple shows at famed Long Island venue My Father's Place and have performed alongside Counting Crows and Rob Thomas at The Outlaw Roadshow Festival. In recent years, Andrew Weiss and Friends were highlights at the 2025 ListenUp! Music & Arts Festival, the 2024 Great South Bay Festival, the 2022 Underwater Sunshine Festival, the 2021 Mondo Festival, and in 2023, 2024, and 2025 they headlined the MLB Washington Nationals’ Grateful Dead Night to sold out crowds of thousands. Their 2024 performance at Nationals Park was praised on air by the legendary Tony Kornheiser of ESPN’s PTI fame.
The band's moniker honors music’s essential pairing with camaraderie (something we could all use more of these days). Shindig! Magazine observed, “It’s clear that Weiss doesn’t do anything by halves. Big, clever tunes. There’s poetic tilted Americana, booming pop and anthemic road rock. Sometimes it tilts towards the psychedelic. It’s all rather impressive.” Weiss’s astute observations on love, life, and happiness — and how those things may have shifted in recent years — are vital reminders that music is, at the end of the day, a healing agent for us all.